


A Study in Flirting

by sherlollyship



Category: Sherlock (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-07-03
Updated: 2014-07-03
Packaged: 2018-02-07 07:05:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,928
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1889517
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sherlollyship/pseuds/sherlollyship





	1. Chapter 1

Sherlock Holmes was bored. He was mind numbingly, sickeningly bored. He had spent the entire morning shooting holes in the wall and doing unnecessary experiments. But he had soon run out of hypothesises to test and Mrs.Hudson had yelled at him for ruining the flat, again.

So he had gone to St. Bartholomew’s hospital for body parts to play with. But Molly, the pathologist, had refused him. She had really toughened up lately. Usually she would go out of her way to help him, cost what it will.

Hence, he was now studying a scrap of paper under the microscope for no apparent reason. He was still bored, very bored, but at least he had some company. He liked spending time with her. Usually being around people drained his energy, but she did not. He even preferred her presence.

Sherlock had been thinking for some time lately that he should do something about it. John was always nagging him about “making a move already!” He always told him that he would do no such thing and that he was an idiot for even suggesting something that silly and he was in no way interested in or sexually attracted to Molly. Of course, John had to point out his choice of words, at which Sherlock got angry and resorted to insulting John in any way he could think of. The ex-soldier only smiled at him amused, which sent Sherlock into his room, declaring that he wouldn’t put up with John´s nonsense anymore.

But, Sherlock had admittedly thought a lot about it. He had been doing some research, like he thought any reasonable man should do. He should flirt, according to the internet and Mary, which he had involuntarily confided in. Light touching, compliments and showing any sort of attention or affection towards her were all good tricks.

He figured that this was a good a time as ever to try it out. He was insanely bored and this piece of paper wasn´t very interesting so he decided to have a go.

He stood awkwardly up from the chair and wandered innocently over to Molly. As he took a step to position himself beside her, he placed his hand on the small of her back. She looked up surprised. He tried desperately not to panic at her facial expression and did his best to give her a smile.

“Anything new?”

She was examining a body, not a murder victim, a simple case of a heart attack. He knew this of course, but he needed an excuse to talk to her.

“No, it was just a heart attack. They just wanted me to check. The relatives demanded it.”

She shrugged.

“Your hair looks nice today.” He took a strand of her hair in his hand, smiling at her gently.

“No.”

“What? No?” Sherlock stepped back, offended by her abrupt statement.

“You´re not getting any body parts!”

The consulting detective sighed, a little relieved.

“I wasn´t thinking about body parts! I mean……uhm.”

“Right.” Her voice drenched in sarcasm.

“Dear Molly-“

“Dear? Sherlock I just told you, you´re not getting any body parts this way!” She turned her attention back to the man on the slab.

“That´s not what I´ve been told.” He muttered under his breath.

Sherlock paced back and forth in the lab while Molly studied the body and filled out her paperwork. He was trying to come up with something more to say or do. His head was bent in deep concentration. 

“Do you have a case Sherlock? I thought you just wanted body parts, you usually only want those when you´re bored.” She raised an eyebrow. He must have been pacing for a while.

“Yes, you could say that.”

“Difficult case then?” She asked.

“Yes, immensely.”

“Do you need any help? I still can´t give you those feet, but maybe it helps to just talk about it. You do that sometimes with John.”

He stopped pacing.

“Maybe.”

He strode a little hesitantly over to her. He straightened his posture. This flirting thing was clearly not working very well.

“Will you let me call you dear?”

Molly looked at him confused. He sighed; he didn’t like lingering on this awful sentimental thing.

“Will you let me compliment you? I mean take me seriously when I say you look beautiful.” His palm quickly covered his mouth, realizing his tongue might have slipped a bit. This was getting worse.

“You think I´m beautiful?”

“Yes, very. The way you´re brown eyes twinkle when you get excited, your lips, you, all of you.” He continued since it seemed he was actually getting somewhere with this.

Molly stood thoughtful, her eyes glued to Sherlock´s, searching them. He tried to show he was being sincere. 

“No, you´re still not getting any.” She turned away from him.

“I give up.” Sherlock Holmes marched out of the lab, throwing his hands dramatically in the air.


	2. Chapter 2

Molly walked tiredly up the wooden stairs, her legs weary from the unusually tiresome day. Her cases had all been dull and obvious and her day had consisted primarily of paperwork. Worst of all, Sherlock had the nerve to barge into her morgue to beg for body parts. She sighed at the thought. He could really be a child sometimes. 

She opened the door to Mary´s cozy living room. She found Mary sitting on her sofa, waiting for Molly. She had invited the pathologist for dinner. She had sounded unusually excited on the phone and she prayed to god that she hadn’t made any plans for them to go out.

“So?” Mary inquired as she entered, smiling smugly.

“So?” Molly was confused by the merriment in her voice.

“How was your day?”

Mary bit her lip and her eyes twinkled. She had been waiting all day for Molly to come. She had had a very interesting talk with Sherlock the night before. Seeing Molly now however, she thought he must have chickened out. She looked absolutely fatigued and her mood not at all lightened.

“Dreadful!” She dumped her bag on Mary´s floor and dumped down in one of her comfortable chairs.

“Dreadful?”

“Horrendous. I had so much work! And it was so mind numbingly boring, I´m starting to reconsider my career choice.”

“And Sherlock?” She urged Molly on.

“Sherlock? Did he talk to you? He did come today, but ugh he was such a pain! He was begging for body parts again and he even resorted to those stupid compliments.” She shook her head disapprovingly.

“I really thought he was done with that…that condescending, idiotic, stupid….” Molly channelled all her repressed frustration into her speech.

“I just really thought he had changed you know and then he comes barging in, calling me to help him. Again.”

Mary tried to interrupt her, but Molly wasn´t done. She started pacing the floor as she spoke quickly, unable to contain her anger.

“I shouldn´t be surprised. He´s always been like this, always. He does nothing but nag and I always do what he wants , I always give him his fucking body parts and let him stay and use my lab and I stupidly, as fucking always, I help him.”

She stopped talking, seeing the mortified expression on Mary´s face.

“I´m sorry, I didn’t mean to get so carried away. It has just been a very very long day.”

“I haven’t talked to him all day and that certainly explains why.”

“What?”

“He must be crushed.” Mary nibbled at her thumb.

“Mary, what do you mean?” She asked, her voice turned calm and worried. She could feel the feeling of guilt creeping up on her, though she didn’t know why.

“I may have had a talk with Sherlock about flirting.”

Molly raised her brow.

“And it seems he may have tried it out on you.”

"What?"

"You remember that scarf you bought, but you lost? I might have found it in his room. And I confronted him. He admitted to stealing it after I interrogated him for some time and used some maybe questionable methods. Anyway, he spilled all and I said that he had to come up with something better than stealing your stuff and sneaking into your apartment."

Molly looked at her questionably and Mary nodded in reply.

"So I gave him some advice. I told him to try to flatter you to actually make you at all aware that he actually likes you, not that I haven’t told you that before." 

The pathologist covered her mouth in horror and slowly reseated herself back in the chair. The feeling of guilt now flooded over her and her anger completely vanished. She sat quiet, thinking. All the things he had said, calling her beautiful. She brought her hand to her head and shook her head slightly in denial.

Mary smiled at her condolingly.

“Fuck. Shit.” She cursed herself. She had been so abominably rude to him, plainly denying his compliments.

Mary couldn’t help but giggle at the situation. It was such a comedic misunderstanding and she could picture Sherlock´s face as Molly refused to take him seriously.

“Maybe you should call him?” Mary suggested.

“Yes, I suppose. Yes.” She rose slowly, still in shock and went to find her phone in her bag.

A smile appeared on her lips as his words finally sunk in. She stood with her phone in her hand and stood smiling for a bit, savouring the feeling.

“Molly?” Mary smiled. “Call him.”

"Yes." She finally found her phone. "You know what maybe I should meet him. It would be weird doing this over the phone."

"You´re right. I´ll have dinner ready for when you come back and I´ll make some for Sherlock, he´s probably not eaten all day, he never does. Now hurry, go!" She ushered her excitedly out the door. And Molly hurried off to Bakerstreet.

Her heart thumped lightly and quickly in her chest as she entered the flat and almost ran up the stairs. She found him in his chair, which was now turned towards the wall, throwing a bouncy ball at the wall. Mrs.Hudson had given it to him as an alternative to shooting at it, which had called the police to the flat on many occasions. 

He didn´t turn his head towards her, but stared gloomily at the wallpaper and threw the ball anew at it with unnecessary force. 

"Yes?" He inquired lamely.

"Thank you." 

He turned towards her, still bouncing the ball towards the wall.

"For what?"

"For what you said earlier today. And I´m sorry." She walked towards him trying desperately not to smile at Sherlocks sour expression.

She laid a hand on his shoulder and he turned his head abruptly to look at where he felt her touch. 

"That´s…ehm that´s fine." His eyes still focused on her hand.

She withdrew it seeing that he seemed uncomfortable, but he immediately missed the warmth of her touch and she smiled childishly at the longing look he sent her. 

"I really feel bad."

"Don´t don´t." He rose, a little unsteadily. His eyes were now turned towards the floor before him. 

"Uhm, Sherlock, dear?" His head shot up and his eyes met hers.

She giggled at his expression. 

"Mary has dinner waiting, do you want to come?"

He smiled.

"Yes, yes." He took her arm in his and they both exited Bakerstreet, both smiling awkwardly as they hailed a cab.


End file.
